Date: 01 Sep 2006 22:47:34
From: JOHN PAZMINO
Subject: NYC Events 2/2 Sep 4/ 4
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Continued from previous message.
discussions of astronomy news, with a lively and stable attendance.
The session on August 17 featured the Seminar's first substitute
moderator. NYSkier Myrna Coffino filled in for John Pazmino, who was
at the 'New trends in astrodynamics' convention in Princeton NJ.
The September 7th Seminar, and the September 9th National Space
Society meeting, host John Pazmino on 'Gravity behaves like that?'.
This is the talk he presented at New Trends in Astrodynamics. If you
missed the conference, here's your chance to learn about captured
comets, resonant orbits, gravity assist and resist.
Governors Island winds up its 2006 season of relaxing,
sightseeing, and science lectures on September 2nd. If you want to get
in a final visit, do so NOW,
THe Connecicut Star Party runs on September 22-24. It offers
camping, stargazing, and other traditional starparty features.
With the nighttime stargazing sessions in full operation, please
understand that weather at night can be much cooler and windier than
by day. As silly as it may seem under daytime scorching Sun, bring a
sweater with you.
Sky News
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Torrid humid weather is late July thru early August stifled
stargazing just about every where in the NYSkies territory. By mid
month, the sky dried out, allowing some really pleasant starviewing.
There were a few quite dark nights over the City, tho not yet
permitting the Milky Way to shine thru.
September opens the autumn season of Milky Way sighting. It runs
thru end of November for the best chance in New York City to spot the
Milky way. With the expereince of the last many yeasrs, the season is
shortened to end November from end December. It turned out that
December tends to be coloudy and the summer Milky Way sets in early
night.
The Perseid meteors were observed under clear dry skies. However,
the 3rd Quarter Moon washed out the dimmer meteors. For most viewers,
the show was worth the early morning effort.
Thankfully, only a few novice astronomers were fooled by the
stupid Mars procimity news from August. I know of one group who
planned to view Mars from an upstate site! Since it rained on the
weekend of proximity, perhaps the trip was caalled off?
It's nonsense like this Mars thing that drive us astronomers
crazy. It adds to the tuitional and educatinal burden we carry to a
totally excessive degree.
In the low southwest is Jupiter with Oval BA, the new junior red
spot. Oval BA or Red Spot Junior, is well ahead of the Great Red Spot
by end August.
Also in the soutwest, in southern Ophiuchus, is Pluto. Is he a
planet? The International Astronomical Union on August 24th removed
him from the ranks of the major planets. It classed Pluto, along with
Ceres and 2003-UB313, as a 'dwarf planet'.
So Pluto remains a 'planet'. He's a special category of planet,
like there are dwarf stars, dwaef galaxies, dwarf novae, and so on in
other sectors of astronomy. Hence, you may inspect Pluto and still
note that you are seeing a planet. He's no longer the FARTHEST planet,
with 2003-UB313 being a ways more distant.
NYSkies
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Astronomers are exploiting NYSkies as a quick, handy, friendly,
and potent source of astronomy news relating to the City. And there is
LOTS of astronomy stuff going on around New York! Since it revived on
28 September 2001 (it was interrupted by World Trade Center) NYSkies
became the definitive forum and public record for matters bearing on
home astronomy in and around New York.
Joining NYSkies is easy. Send an empty email to this Yahoogroup
maillist at 'nysky-subscribe@yahoogroups.com'. Its posts are sent to
you in your email and you post to it by email. It's that simple!
Or you may go to 'groups.yahoo.com/group/nysky'. If you are
already signed up with Yahoo, you go and sign in and then 'join'
NYSkies. If not, you have to go thru a silly 'registration' that's a
one shot chore, valid for all groups you may eventually join. The
files area of NYSkies are accessible only thru the website.
[end of part 2 of 2]
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þ RoseReader 2.52á P005004
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